Melon hybrid SV6239MF and parents thereof

ABSTRACT

The invention provides seed and plants of melon hybrid SV6239MF and the parent lines thereof. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of melon hybrid SV6239MF and the parent lines thereof, and to methods for producing a melon plant produced by crossing such plants with themselves or with another melon plant, such as a plant of another genotype. The invention further relates to seeds and plants produced by such crossing. The invention further relates to parts of such plants, including the fruit and gametes of such plants.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of plant breeding and, morespecifically, to the development of melon hybrid SV6239MF and the inbredmelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The goal of vegetable breeding is to combine various desirable traits ina single variety/hybrid. Such desirable traits may include any traitdeemed beneficial by a grower and/or consumer, including greater yield,resistance to insects or disease, tolerance to environmental stress, andnutritional value.

Breeding techniques take advantage of a plant's method of pollination.There are two general methods of pollination: a plant self-pollinates ifpollen from one flower is transferred to the same or another flower ofthe same plant or plant variety. A plant cross-pollinates if pollencomes to it from a flower of a different plant variety.

Plants that have been self-pollinated and selected for type over manygenerations become homozygous at almost all gene loci and produce auniform population of true breeding progeny, a homozygous plant. A crossbetween two such homozygous plants of different genotypes produces auniform population of hybrid plants that are heterozygous for many geneloci. Conversely, a cross of two plants each heterozygous at a number ofloci produces a population of hybrid plants that differ genetically andare not uniform. The resulting non-uniformity makes performanceunpredictable.

The development of uniform varieties requires the development ofhomozygous inbred plants, the crossing of these inbred plants, and theevaluation of the crosses. Pedigree breeding and recurrent selection areexamples of breeding methods that have been used to develop inbredplants from breeding populations. Those breeding methods combine thegenetic backgrounds from two or more plants or various other broad-basedsources into breeding pools from which new lines and hybrids derivedtherefrom are developed by selfing and selection of desired phenotypes.The new lines and hybrids are evaluated to determine which of those havecommercial potential.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the present invention provides a melon plant of thehybrid designated SV6239MF, the melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon lineHARDV11-4057AN. Also provided are melon plants having all thephysiological and morphological characteristics of such a plant. Partsof these melon plants are also provided, for example, including pollen,an ovule, scion, a rootstock, a fruit, and a cell of the plant.

In another aspect of the invention, a plant of melon hybrid SV6239MFand/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN comprising an addedheritable trait is provided. The heritable trait may comprise a geneticlocus that is, for example, a dominant or recessive allele. In oneembodiment of the invention, a plant of melon hybrid SV6239MF and/ormelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN is defined as comprising asingle locus conversion. In specific embodiments of the invention, anadded genetic locus confers one or more traits such as, for example,herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, disease resistance, and modifiedcarbohydrate metabolism. In further embodiments, the trait may beconferred by a naturally occurring gene introduced into the genome of aline by backcrossing, a natural or induced mutation, or a transgeneintroduced through genetic transformation techniques into the plant or aprogenitor of any previous generation thereof. When introduced throughtransformation, a genetic locus may comprise one or more genesintegrated at a single chromosomal location.

The invention also concerns the seed of melon hybrid SV6239MF and/ormelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN. The melon seed of theinvention may be provided, in particular embodiments, as an essentiallyhomogeneous population of melon seed of melon hybrid SV6239MF and/ormelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN. Essentially homogeneouspopulations of seed are generally free from substantial numbers of otherseed. Therefore, seed of hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN may be provided, in certainembodiments of the invention, as forming at least about 97% of the totalseed, including at least about 98%, 99% or more of the seed. The seedpopulation may be separately grown to provide an essentially homogeneouspopulation of melon plants designated SV6239MF and/or melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a tissue culture of regenerablecells of a melon plant of hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN is provided. The tissue culture willpreferably be capable of regenerating melon plants capable of expressingall of the physiological and morphological characteristics of thestarting plant, and of regenerating plants having substantially the samegenotype as the starting plant. Examples of some of the physiologicaland morphological characteristics of the hybrid SV6239MF and/or melonlines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN include those traits set forthin the tables herein. The regenerable cells in such tissue cultures maybe derived, for example, from embryos, meristems, cotyledons, pollen,leaves, anthers, roots, root tips, pistils, flowers, seed and stalks.Still further, the present invention provides melon plants regeneratedfrom a tissue culture of the invention, the plants having all thephysiological and morphological characteristics of hybrid SV6239MFand/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, processes are provided forproducing melon seeds, plants and fruit, which processes generallycomprise crossing a first parent melon plant with a second parent melonplant, wherein at least one of the first or second parent melon plantsis a plant of melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon line HARDV11-4057AN.These processes may be further exemplified as processes for preparinghybrid melon seed or plants, wherein a first melon plant is crossed witha second melon plant of a different, distinct genotype to provide ahybrid that has, as one of its parents, a plant of melon lineHARDV10-4020MO or melon line HARDV11-4057AN. In these processes,crossing will result in the production of seed. The seed productionoccurs regardless of whether the seed is collected or not.

In one embodiment of the invention, the first step in “crossing”comprises planting seeds of a first and second parent melon plant, oftenin proximity so that pollination will occur for example, mediated byinsect vectors. Alternatively, pollen can be transferred manually. Wherethe plant is self-pollinated, pollination may occur without the need fordirect human intervention other than plant cultivation.

A second step may comprise cultivating or growing the seeds of first andsecond parent melon plants into plants that bear flowers. A third stepmay comprise preventing self-pollination of the plants, such as byemasculating the flowers (i.e., killing or removing the pollen).

A fourth step for a hybrid cross may comprise cross-pollination betweenthe first and second parent melon plants. Yet another step comprisesharvesting the seeds from at least one of the parent melon plants. Theharvested seed can be grown to produce a melon plant or hybrid melonplant.

The present invention also provides the melon seeds and plants producedby a process that comprises crossing a first parent melon plant with asecond parent melon plant, wherein at least one of the first or secondparent melon plants is a plant of melon hybrid SV6239MF and/or melonlines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN. In one embodiment of theinvention, melon seed and plants produced by the process are firstgeneration (F₁) hybrid melon seed and plants produced by crossing aplant in accordance with the invention with another, distinct plant. Thepresent invention further contemplates plant parts of such an F₁ hybridmelon plant, and methods of use thereof. Therefore, certain exemplaryembodiments of the invention provide an F₁ hybrid melon plant and seedthereof.

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides a method ofproducing a plant derived from hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN, the method comprising the steps of:(a) preparing a progeny plant derived from hybrid SV6239MF and/or melonlines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN, wherein said preparingcomprises crossing a plant of the hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN with a second plant; and (b) crossingthe progeny plant with itself or a second plant to produce a seed of aprogeny plant of a subsequent generation. In further embodiments, themethod may additionally comprise: (c) growing a progeny plant of asubsequent generation from said seed of a progeny plant of a subsequentgeneration and crossing the progeny plant of a subsequent generationwith itself or a second plant; and repeating the steps for an additional3-10 generations to produce a plant derived from hybrid SV6239MF and/ormelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN. The plant derived fromhybrid SV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN maybe an inbred line, and the aforementioned repeated crossing steps may bedefined as comprising sufficient inbreeding to produce the inbred line.In the method, it may be desirable to select particular plants resultingfrom step (c) for continued crossing according to steps (b) and (c). Byselecting plants having one or more desirable traits, a plant derivedfrom hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO andHARDV11-4057AN is obtained which possesses some of the desirable traitsof the line/hybrid as well as potentially other selected traits.

In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a method ofproducing food or feed comprising: (a) obtaining a plant of melon hybridSV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN, whereinthe plant has been cultivated to maturity, and (b) collecting at leastone melon from the plant.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, the genetic complement ofmelon hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO andHARDV11-4057AN is provided. The phrase “genetic complement” is used torefer to the aggregate of nucleotide sequences, the expression of whichsequences defines the phenotype of, in the present case, a melon plant,or a cell or tissue of that plant. A genetic complement thus representsthe genetic makeup of a cell, tissue or plant, and a hybrid geneticcomplement represents the genetic make up of a hybrid cell, tissue orplant. The invention thus provides melon plant cells that have a geneticcomplement in accordance with the melon plant cells disclosed herein,and seeds and plants containing such cells.

Plant genetic complements may be assessed by genetic marker profiles,and by the expression of phenotypic traits that are characteristic ofthe expression of the genetic complement, e.g., isozyme typing profiles.It is understood that hybrid SV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MOand HARDV11-4057AN could be identified by any of the many well knowntechniques such as, for example, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides hybridgenetic complements, as represented by melon plant cells, tissues,plants, and seeds, formed by the combination of a haploid geneticcomplement of a melon plant of the invention with a haploid geneticcomplement of a second melon plant, preferably, another, distinct melonplant. In another aspect, the present invention provides a melon plantregenerated from a tissue culture that comprises a hybrid geneticcomplement of this invention.

In still yet another aspect, the invention provides a method ofdetermining the genotype of a plant of melon hybrid SV6239MF and/ormelon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN comprising detecting inthe genome of the plant at least a first polymorphism. The method may,in certain embodiments, comprise detecting a plurality of polymorphismsin the genome of the plant. The method may further comprise storing theresults of the step of detecting the plurality of polymorphisms on acomputer readable medium. The invention further provides a computerreadable medium produced by such a method.

Any embodiment discussed herein with respect to one aspect of theinvention applies to other aspects of the invention as well, unlessspecifically noted.

The term “about” is used to indicate that a value includes the standarddeviation of the mean for the device or method being employed todetermine the value. The use of the term “or” in the claims is used tomean “and/or” unless explicitly indicated to refer to alternatives onlyor the alternatives are mutually exclusive. When used in conjunctionwith the word “comprising” or other open language in the claims, thewords “a” and “an” denote “one or more,” unless specifically notedotherwise. The terms “comprise,” “have” and “include” are open-endedlinking verbs. Any forms or tenses of one or more of these verbs, suchas “comprises,” “comprising,” “has,” “having,” “includes” and“including,” are also open-ended. For example, any method that“comprises,” “has” or “includes” one or more steps is not limited topossessing only those one or more steps and also covers other unlistedsteps. Similarly, any plant that “comprises,” “has” or “includes” one ormore traits is not limited to possessing only those one or more traitsand covers other unlisted traits.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description. It should beunderstood, however, that the detailed description and any specificexamples provided, while indicating specific embodiments of theinvention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changesand modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from this detaileddescription.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides methods and compositions relating to plants,seeds and derivatives of melon hybrid SV6239MF, melon lineHARDV10-4020MO and melon line HARDV11-4057AN. The hybrid SV6239MF wasproduced by the cross of parent lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN.The parent lines show uniformity and stability within the limits ofenvironmental influence. By crossing the parent lines, uniform seedhybrid SV6239MF can be obtained.

Hybrid SV6239MF is a Harper type hybrid melon similar in appearance tothe hybrid Caribbean Gold. The fruit of SV6239MF is non-sutured, havelight silver to creamy colored skin, and have a long shelf life.SV6239MF has higher Brix, deeper orange flesh color, and a smaller seedcavity than the variety Caribbean Gold. SV6239MF shows broad adaptationto many melon growing regions.

A. ORIGIN AND BREEDING HISTORY OF MELON HYBRID SV6239MF

The parents of hybrid SV6239MF are HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN.The parent lines are uniform and stable, as is a hybrid producedtherefrom. A small percentage of variants can occur within commerciallyacceptable limits for almost any characteristic during the course ofrepeated multiplication. However no variants are expected.

B. PHYSIOLOGICAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MELON HYBRID

SV6239MF, Melon Line HARDV10-4020MO and Melon Line HARDV11-4057AN

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a plant having the physiological and morphologicalcharacteristics of melon hybrid SV6239MF and the parent lines thereof. Adescription of the physiological and morphological characteristics ofsuch plants is presented in Tables 1-3.

TABLE 1 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of HybridSV6239MF Comparison Variety- CHARACTERISTIC SV6239MF Caribbean Gold 1.Type common or common or summer summer 3. Seedling length of hypocotyl(just before medium medium development of the first true leaf) size ofcotyledon medium medium intensity of green color of medium mediumcotyledon 4. Leaf (mature blade of third leaf) shape reniform reniformlobes shallowly lobed shallowly lobed color dark green dark green RHSColor Chart value 147A 147A length 108.8 mm 100.4 mm width 142.2 mm137.8 mm surface pubescent pubescent 5. Leaf Blade (fully developed butnot old leaves, preferably between the 5^(th) and 8^(th) node when theplant has at least 11 nodes) size medium medium intensity of green colordark dark development of lobes medium medium length of terminal lobemedium medium dentation of margin medium weak blistering medium weak 6.Petiole attitude erect erect length medium long 7. Plant fertility - sexexpression (at full monoecious monoecious flowering) habit vine vine 8.Young fruit (green, unripe fruit before color change) hue of green colorof skin whitish green green intensity of green color of skin mediummedium density of dots absent or sparse very sparse conspicuousness ofabsent or absent or groove coloring very weak very weak length ofpeduncle medium long thickness of peduncle 1 cm from medium thick fruitextension of darker area around small medium peduncle change of skincolor from young very late in fruit very late in fruit fruit to maturitydevelopment or development no change or no change 9. Fruit length mediummedium length (at edible maturity) 15.9 cm 16.4 cm diameter mediummedium diameter (at edible maturity) 14.2 cm 14.5 cm ratiolength/diameter small small weight (at edible maturity) 1593.2 gm 1736.4gm position of maximum diameter at middle at middle shape round roundshape in longitudinal section broad elliptic broad elliptic surface (atedible maturity) netted netted blossom scar (at edible maturity)conspicuous conspicuous rib presence (at edible maturity) absent absentshipping quality excellent excellent (at edible maturity) abscission (atedible maturity) do not abscise do not abscise maturity (number of daysfrom 99 99 seeding to harvest) Rind Net net presence abundant abundantdistribution covers entire fruit covers entire fruit coarseness verycoarse very coarse interlacing complete complete interstices medium deepmedium deep Rind texture: hard hard thickness at medial 5.0 mm 1.7 mmRind Color Primary Color gray/green gray/green (at edible maturity) RHSColor Chart value 191B 194A Net Color (at edible maturity) yellow/greengray/yellow RHS Color Chart value 160D 161D Primary Color (at fullmaturity) gray/yellow yellow/green RHS Color Chart value 160A 154A NetColor (at full maturity yellow/white orange/white RHS Color Chart value158A 159C Fruit: ground color of skin yellow yellow intensity of groundcolor of skin light medium hue of ground color of skin yellowishyellowish density of dots absent or absent or very sparse very sparsedensity of patches absent or absent or very sparse very sparse wartsabsent absent strength of attachment of very strong strong peduncle atmaturity shape of base rounded rounded shape of apex rounded roundedsize of pistil scar medium medium grooves weakly absent or veryexpressed weakly expressed width of grooves narrow depth of grooves veryshallow color of grooves green creasing of surface absent or absent orvery weak very weak cork formation present present thickness of corklayer very thick very thick pattern of cork formation netted only nettedonly density of pattern of very dense very dense cork formation rate ofchange of skin color slow absent or from maturity to over very slowmaturity width of flesh in longitudinal medium medium section (atposition of maximum fruit diameter) main color of flesh orange orangeintensity of orange color of flesh medium medium (only varieties withmain color of flesh orange) firmness of flesh firm firm at overmaturity: hue of color of yellow skin (only varieties with change ofskin color from maturity to over maturity) at over maturity: intensityof medium yellow color of skin (only varieties with change of skin colorfrom maturity to over maturity and with yellow or orangish yellow colorof skin) 10. Flesh Color Near Cavity (at edible orange orange maturity)RHS Color Chart value 26B 26B Color in Center orange orange (at ediblematurity) RHS Color Chart value 26B 26B Color Near Rind (at edibleorange orange maturity) RHS Color Chart value 26B 26B Flesh:refractometer % soluable 16.60% 15.80% solids (center of flesh) aroma(at edible maturity) strong faint flavor (at edible maturity) somewhatspicy very spicy 12. Seed length of the seed cavity 98.3 mm 98.8 mmwidth of seed cavity 54.3 mm 53.8 mm shape in cross section triangularcircular length (made on fully developed medium medium and dry seeds,after washing and drying in the shade) width medium medium shapepine-nut shape pine-nut shape color cream yellow cream yellow intensityof color (only varieties light medium with cream yellow seed color) Timeof male flowering early early Time of female flowering early early Timeof ripening late late Shelf life of fruit very long medium Seeds:measurements (number 788.3 705.3 of seeds per fruit) Seeds: measurements(grams per 25.0 gm 26.0 gm 1,000 seeds) *These are typical values.Values may vary due to environment. Other values that are substantiallyequivalent are also within the scope of the invention.

TABLE 2 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of LineHARDV10-4020M0 Comparison Variety- HARDV10- Caribbean CHARACTERISTIC4020MO Gold 1. Type common or common or summer summer 3. Seedling lengthof hypocotyl (just before medium medium development of the first trueleaf) size of cotyledon medium medium intensity of green color of mediummedium cotyledon 4. Leaf (mature blade of third leaf) shape reniformreniform lobes shallowly shallowly lobed lobed color dark green darkgreen RHS Color Chart value 147A 147A length 110.3 mm 114.5 mm width151.6 mm 154.6 mm surface glabrous pubescent 5. Leaf Blade (fullydeveloped but not old leaves, preferably between the 5^(th) and 8^(th)node when the plant has at least 11 nodes) size medium medium intensityof green color dark dark development of lobes medium medium length ofterminal lobe medium medium dentation of margin weak weak blisteringmedium weak 6. Petiole attitude erect erect length long long 7. Plantfertility - sex expression (at full monoecious monoecious flowering)habit vine vine 8. Young fruit (green, unripe fruit before color change)hue of green color of skin greyish green green intensity of green colorof skin light medium density of dots absent or sparse very sparseconspicuousness of groove absent or absent or coloring very weak veryweak length of peduncle long long thickness of peduncle 1 cm from thinthick fruit extension of darker area around medium medium pedunclechange of skin color from young very late very late fruit to maturity infruit in fruit development development or or no change no change 9.Fruit length medium medium length (at edible maturity) 15.3 cm 17.2 cmdiameter medium medium diameter (at edible maturity) 13.7 cm 14.7 cmratio length/diameter small small weight (at edible maturity) 1492.5 gm1815.8 gm position of maximum diameter at middle at middle shape roundround shape in longitudinal section broad elliptic broad ellipticsurface (at edible maturity) netted netted blossom scar (at ediblematurity) conspicuous conspicuous rib presence (at edible maturity)absent absent shipping quality (at edible maturity) excellent excellentabscission (at edible maturity) when ripe do not abscise maturity(number of days from 91 101 seeding to harvest) Rind Net net presenceabundant abundant distribution covers entire covers entire fruit fruitcoarseness medium coarse very coarse interlacing complete completeinterstices medium deep medium deep Rind texture: hard hard thickness atmedial 2.2 mm 2.1 mm Rind Color Primary Color (at edible maturity)yellow/green gray/green RHS Color Chart value 145C 194A Net Color (atedible maturity) gray/yellow gray/yellow RHS Color Chart value 160D 161DPrimary Color (at full maturity) gray/orange yellow/green RHS ColorChart value 164C 154A Net Color (at full maturity orange/whiteorange/white RHS Color Chart value 159A 159C Fruit: ground color of skinyellow yellow intensity of ground color of skin light medium hue ofground color of skin yellowish yellowish density of dots absent orabsent or very sparse very sparse density of patches absent or absent orvery sparse very sparse warts absent absent strength of attachment ofpeduncle weak strong at maturity shape of base rounded rounded shape ofapex rounded rounded size of pistil scar medium medium grooves absent orabsent or very weakly very weakly expressed expressed creasing ofsurface absent or absent or very weak very weak cork formation presentpresent thickness of cork layer very thick very thick pattern of corkformation netted only netted only density of pattern of cork formationvery dense very dense rate of change of skin color from medium absent ormaturity to over maturity very slow width of flesh in longitudinalmedium medium section (at position of maximum fruit diameter) main colorof flesh orange orange intensity of orange color of flesh dark medium(only varieties with main color of flesh orange) firmness of flesh firmfirm at over maturity: hue of color of orangish yellow skin (onlyvarieties with change of skin color from maturity to over maturity) atover maturity: intensity of yellow light color of skin (only varietieswith change of skin color from maturity to over maturity and with yellowor orangish yellow color of skin) 10. Flesh Color Near Cavity (at edibleorange orange maturity) RHS Color Chart value 26B 26B Color in Center(at edible maturity) orange orange RHS Color Chart value 26B 26B ColorNear Rind (at edible orange orange maturity) RHS Color Chart value 26B26B Flesh: refractometer % soluable 11.30% 16.20% solids (center offlesh) aroma (at edible maturity) strong faint flavor (at ediblematurity) somewhat very spicy spicy 12. Seed length of the seed cavity100.3 mm 107.6 mm width of seed cavity 61.0 mm 57.4 mm shape in crosssection circular circular length (made on fully developed short mediumand dry seeds, after washing and drying in the shade) width mediummedium shape pine-nut pine-nut shape shape color cream yellow creamyellow intensity of color (only varieties light medium with cream yellowseed color) Time of male flowering early early Time of female floweringlate early Time of ripening medium late Shelf life of fruit mediummedium Seeds: measurements (number of 602.3 722.8 seeds per fruit)Seeds: measurements (grams per 22.0 gm 27.5 gm 1,000 seeds) *These aretypical values. Values may vary due to environment. Other values thatare substantially equivalent are also within the scope of the invention.

TABLE 3 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of LineHARDV11-4057AN Comparison Variety- HARDV11- Caribbean CHARACTERISTIC4057AN Gold 1. Type common or common or summer summer 3. Seedling lengthof hypocotyl (just before long medium development of the first trueleaf) size of cotyledon medium medium intensity of green color of mediummedium cotyledon 4. Leaf (mature blade of third leaf) shape reniformreniform lobes shallowly shallowly lobed lobed color dark green darkgreen RHS Color Chart value 147A 147A length 102.0 mm 100.4 mm width158.8 mm 137.8 mm surface glabrous pubescent 5. Leaf Blade (fullydeveloped but not old leaves, preferably between the 5^(th) and 8^(th)node when the plant has at least 11 nodes) size large medium intensityof green color dark dark development of lobes medium medium length ofterminal lobe medium medium dentation of margin medium weak blisteringmedium weak 6. Petiole attitude erect erect length long long 7. Plantfertility - sex expression (at full andro- monoecious flowering)monoecious habit vine vine 8. Young fruit (green, unripe fruit beforecolor change) hue of green color of skin whitish green green intensityof green color of skin medium medium density of dots sparse sparse sizeof dots small small contrast of dot color/ground color medium mediumconspicuousness of groove coloring medium absent or very weak intensityof groove coloring medium length of peduncle medium long thickness ofpeduncle 1 cm from medium thick fruit extension of darker area aroundmedium medium peduncle change of skin color from young very late verylate fruit to maturity in fruit in fruit development development or nochange or no change 9. Fruit length short medium length (at ediblematurity) 10.6 cm 16.4 cm diameter narrow medium diameter (at ediblematurity) 10.7 cm 14.5 cm ratio length/diameter very small small weight(at edible maturity) 696.9 gm 1736.4 gm position of maximum diameter atmiddle at middle shape round round shape in longitudinal sectioncircular broad elliptic surface (at edible maturity) netted nettedblossom scar (at edible maturity) conspicuous conspicuous rib presence(at edible maturity) present absent number of ribs per fruit (at edible9.6 maturity) rib width at medial (at edible 32.4 mm maturity) ribssurface (at edible maturity) netted suture depth (at edible maturity)medium suture surface (at edible maturity) smooth shipping quality (atedible maturity) excellent excellent abscission (at edible maturity) donot abscise do not abscise maturity (number of days from 99 99 seedingto harvest) Rind Net net presence abundant abundant distribution coverscovers entire fruit entire fruit coarseness medium coarse very coarseinterlacing some complete interstices medium deep medium deep Rindtexture: hard hard thickness at medial 4.1 mm 1.7 mm Rind Color PrimaryColor (at edible maturity) gray/green gray/green RHS Color Chart value191C 194A Net Color (at edible maturity) gray/yellow gray/yellow RHSColor Chart value 161D 161D Furrow (Suture) Color (at edible gray/greenmaturity) RHS Color Chart value N189A Primary Color (at full maturity)yellow/green yellow/green RHS Color Chart value 147D 154A Net Color (atfull maturity gray/yellow orange/white RHS Color Chart value 160D 159CFurrow (Suture) Color (at full green maturity) RHS Color Chart value137A Fruit: ground color of skin yellow yellow intensity of ground colorof skin light medium hue of ground color of skin yellowish yellowishdensity of dots absent or absent or very sparse very sparse density ofpatches absent or absent or very sparse very sparse warts absent absentstrength of attachment of very strong strong peduncle at maturity shapeof base rounded rounded shape of apex rounded rounded size of pistilscar medium medium grooves strongly absent or expressed very weaklyexpressed width of grooves medium depth of grooves medium color ofgrooves green creasing of surface absent or absent or very weak veryweak cork formation present present thickness of cork layer thick verythick pattern of cork formation linear and netted only netted density ofpattern of cork formation dense very dense rate of change of skin colorfrom absent or absent or maturity to over maturity very slow very slowwidth of flesh in longitudinal thin medium section (at position ofmaximum fruit diameter) main color of flesh orange orange intensity oforange color of flesh medium medium (only varieties with main color offlesh orange) firmness of flesh firm firm 10. Flesh Color Near Cavity(at edible orange orange maturity) RHS Color Chart value 25C 26B Colorin Center (at edible maturity) orange orange RHS Color Chart value 25C26B Color Near Rind (at edible orange orange maturity) RHS Color Chartvalue 25C 26B Flesh: refractometer % soluable 15.90% 15.80% solids(center of flesh) aroma (at edible maturity) faint faint flavor (atedible maturity) very spicy very spicy 12. Seed length of the seedcavity 54 mm 98.8 mm width of seed cavity 42 mm 53.8 mm shape in crosssection triangular circular length (made on fully developed mediummedium and dry seeds, after washing and drying in the shade) widthnarrow medium shape not pine- pine-nut nut shape shape color creamyellow cream yellow intensity of color (only varieties medium mediumwith cream yellow seed color) Time of male flowering early early Time offemale flowering medium early Time of ripening late late Shelf life offruit very long medium Seeds: measurements 207.8 705.3 (number of seedsper fruit) Seeds: measurements 28.0 gm 26.0 gm (grams per 1,000 seeds)*These are typical values. Values may vary due to environment. Othervalues that are substantially equivalent are also within the scope ofthe invention.

C. BREEDING MELON PLANTS

One aspect of the current invention concerns methods for producing seedof melon hybrid SV6239MF involving crossing melon lines HARDV10-4020MOand HARDV11-4057AN. Alternatively, in other embodiments of theinvention, hybrid SV6239MF, line HARDV10-4020MO, or line HARDV11-4057ANmay be crossed with itself or with any second plant. Such methods can beused for propagation of hybrid SV6239MF and/or the melon linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN, or can be used to produce plants thatare derived from hybrid SV6239MF and/or the melon lines HARDV10-4020MOand HARDV11-4057AN. Plants derived from hybrid SV6239MF and/or the melonlines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN may be used, in certainembodiments, for the development of new melon varieties.

The development of new varieties using one or more starting varieties iswell known in the art. In accordance with the invention, novel varietiesmay be created by crossing hybrid SV6239MF followed by multiplegenerations of breeding according to such well known methods. Newvarieties may be created by crossing with any second plant. In selectingsuch a second plant to cross for the purpose of developing novel lines,it may be desired to choose those plants which either themselves exhibitone or more selected desirable characteristics or which exhibit thedesired characteristic(s) when in hybrid combination. Once initialcrosses have been made, inbreeding and selection take place to producenew varieties. For development of a uniform line, often five or moregenerations of selfing and selection are involved.

Uniform lines of new varieties may also be developed by way ofdouble-haploids. This technique allows the creation of true breedinglines without the need for multiple generations of selfing andselection. In this manner true breeding lines can be produced in aslittle as one generation. Haploid embryos may be produced frommicrospores, pollen, anther cultures, or ovary cultures. The haploidembryos may then be doubled autonomously, or by chemical treatments(e.g. colchicine treatment). Alternatively, haploid embryos may be growninto haploid plants and treated to induce chromosome doubling. In eithercase, fertile homozygous plants are obtained. In accordance with theinvention, any of such techniques may be used in connection with a plantof the invention and progeny thereof to achieve a homozygous line.

Backcrossing can also be used to improve an inbred plant. Backcrossingtransfers a specific desirable trait from one inbred or non-inbredsource to an inbred that lacks that trait. This can be accomplished, forexample, by first crossing a superior inbred (A) (recurrent parent) to adonor inbred (non-recurrent parent), which carries the appropriate locusor loci for the trait in question. The progeny of this cross are thenmated back to the superior recurrent parent (A) followed by selection inthe resultant progeny for the desired trait to be transferred from thenon-recurrent parent. After five or more backcross generations withselection for the desired trait, the progeny have the characteristicbeing transferred, but are like the superior parent for most or almostall other loci. The last backcross generation would be selfed to givepure breeding progeny for the trait being transferred.

The plants of the present invention are particularly well suited for thedevelopment of new lines based on the elite nature of the geneticbackground of the plants. In selecting a second plant to cross withSV6239MF and/or melon lines HARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN for thepurpose of developing novel melon lines, it will typically be preferredto choose those plants which either themselves exhibit one or moreselected desirable characteristics or which exhibit the desiredcharacteristic(s) when in hybrid combination. Examples of desirabletraits may include, in specific embodiments, high seed yield, high seedgermination, seedling vigor, high fruit yield, disease tolerance orresistance, and adaptability for soil and climate conditions.Consumer-driven traits, such as a fruit shape, color, texture, and tasteare other examples of traits that may be incorporated into new lines ofmelon plants developed by this invention.

D. PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS

As described above, hybrid SV6239MF exhibits desirable agronomic traits.The performance characteristics of hybrid SV6239MF were the subject ofan objective analysis of the performance traits relative to othervarieties. The results of the analysis are presented in Table 4.

TABLE 4 Performance data for Hybrid SV6239MF and Comparative VarietyHYBRID Plant Net Shape Cavity Internal Color Brix Firm (kg) Fruits/BoxCaribbean Gold 3 3 5 5 5 12.2 4.22 10.93 SV6239MF 3 3-4 4 3 3 14.7 3.6610.27 Yield Information Harvest 1 (14 Nov. 2014) HYBRID Boxes/ha CullBoxes/ha Fruits/m 6 9j 9 12 15 18 23 Caribbean Gold 1,330 0 2.91 25 4430 SV6239MF 1,829 0 3.64 43 46 11 Harvest 2 (15 Nov. 2014) HYBRIDBoxes/ha Cull Boxes/ha Fruits/m 6 9j 9 12 15 18 23 Caribbean Gold 1,5710 3.09 57 21 21 SV6239MF 1,672 0 3.09 74 10 16

E. FURTHER EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In certain aspects of the invention, plants described herein areprovided modified to include at least a first desired heritable trait.Such plants may, in one embodiment, be developed by a plant breedingtechnique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to a genetic locus transferred into the plant viathe backcrossing technique. The term single locus converted plant asused herein refers to those melon plants which are developed by a plantbreeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to the single locus transferred into the varietyvia the backcrossing technique. By essentially all of the morphologicaland physiological characteristics, it is meant that the characteristicsof a plant are recovered that are otherwise present when compared in thesame environment, other than an occasional variant trait that mightarise during backcrossing or direct introduction of a transgene.

Backcrossing methods can be used with the present invention to improveor introduce a characteristic into the present variety. The parentalmelon plant which contributes the locus for the desired characteristicis termed the nonrecurrent or donor parent. This terminology refers tothe fact that the nonrecurrent parent is used one time in the backcrossprotocol and therefore does not recur. The parental melon plant to whichthe locus or loci from the nonrecurrent parent are transferred is knownas the recurrent parent as it is used for several rounds in thebackcrossing protocol.

In a typical backcross protocol, the original variety of interest(recurrent parent) is crossed to a second variety (nonrecurrent parent)that carries the single locus of interest to be transferred. Theresulting progeny from this cross are then crossed again to therecurrent parent and the process is repeated until a melon plant isobtained wherein essentially all of the morphological and physiologicalcharacteristics of the recurrent parent are recovered in the convertedplant, in addition to the single transferred locus from the nonrecurrentparent.

The selection of a suitable recurrent parent is an important step for asuccessful backcrossing procedure. The goal of a backcross protocol isto alter or substitute a single trait or characteristic in the originalvariety. To accomplish this, a single locus of the recurrent variety ismodified or substituted with the desired locus from the nonrecurrentparent, while retaining essentially all of the rest of the desiredgenetic, and therefore the desired physiological and morphologicalconstitution of the original variety. The choice of the particularnonrecurrent parent will depend on the purpose of the backcross; one ofthe major purposes is to add some commercially desirable trait to theplant. The exact backcrossing protocol will depend on the characteristicor trait being altered and the genetic distance between the recurrentand nonrecurrent parents. Although backcrossing methods are simplifiedwhen the characteristic being transferred is a dominant allele, arecessive allele, or an additive allele (between recessive anddominant), may also be transferred. In this instance it may be necessaryto introduce a test of the progeny to determine if the desiredcharacteristic has been successfully transferred.

In one embodiment, progeny melon plants of a backcross in which a plantdescribed herein is the recurrent parent comprise (i) the desired traitfrom the non-recurrent parent and (ii) all of the physiological andmorphological characteristics of melon the recurrent parent asdetermined at the 5% significance level when grown in the sameenvironmental conditions.

New varieties can also be developed from more than two parents. Thetechnique, known as modified backcrossing, uses different recurrentparents during the backcrossing. Modified backcrossing may be used toreplace the original recurrent parent with a variety having certain moredesirable characteristics or multiple parents may be used to obtaindifferent desirable characteristics from each.

With the development of molecular markers associated with particulartraits, it is possible to add additional traits into an established germline, such as represented here, with the end result being substantiallythe same base germplasm with the addition of a new trait or traits.Molecular breeding, as described in Moose and Mumm, 2008 (PlantPhysiology, 147: 969-977), for example, and elsewhere, provides amechanism for integrating single or multiple traits or QTL into an eliteline. This molecular breeding-facilitated movement of a trait or traitsinto an elite line may encompass incorporation of a particular genomicfragment associated with a particular trait of interest into the eliteline by the mechanism of identification of the integrated genomicfragment with the use of flanking or associated marker assays. In theembodiment represented here, one, two, three or four genomic loci, forexample, may be integrated into an elite line via this methodology. Whenthis elite line containing the additional loci is further crossed withanother parental elite line to produce hybrid offspring, it is possibleto then incorporate at least eight separate additional loci into thehybrid. These additional loci may confer, for example, such traits as adisease resistance or a fruit quality trait. In one embodiment, eachlocus may confer a separate trait. In another embodiment, loci may needto be homozygous and exist in each parent line to confer a trait in thehybrid. In yet another embodiment, multiple loci may be combined toconfer a single robust phenotype of a desired trait.

Many single locus traits have been identified that are not regularlyselected for in the development of a new inbred but that can be improvedby backcrossing techniques. Single locus traits may or may not betransgenic; examples of these traits include, but are not limited to,herbicide resistance, resistance to bacterial, fungal, or viral disease,insect resistance, modified fatty acid or carbohydrate metabolism, andaltered nutritional quality. These comprise genes generally inheritedthrough the nucleus.

Direct selection may be applied where the single locus acts as adominant trait. For this selection process, the progeny of the initialcross are assayed for viral resistance and/or the presence of thecorresponding gene prior to the backcrossing. Selection eliminates anyplants that do not have the desired gene and resistance trait, and onlythose plants that have the trait are used in the subsequent backcross.This process is then repeated for all additional backcross generations.

Selection of melon plants for breeding is not necessarily dependent onthe phenotype of a plant and instead can be based on geneticinvestigations. For example, one can utilize a suitable genetic markerwhich is closely genetically linked to a trait of interest. One of thesemarkers can be used to identify the presence or absence of a trait inthe offspring of a particular cross, and can be used in selection ofprogeny for continued breeding. This technique is commonly referred toas marker assisted selection. Any other type of genetic marker or otherassay which is able to identify the relative presence or absence of atrait of interest in a plant can also be useful for breeding purposes.Procedures for marker assisted selection are well known in the art. Suchmethods will be of particular utility in the case of recessive traitsand variable phenotypes, or where conventional assays may be moreexpensive, time consuming or otherwise disadvantageous. Types of geneticmarkers which could be used in accordance with the invention include,but are not necessarily limited to, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

F. PLANTS DERIVED BY GENETIC ENGINEERING

Many useful traits that can be introduced by backcrossing, as well asdirectly into a plant, are those which are introduced by genetictransformation techniques. Genetic transformation may therefore be usedto insert a selected transgene into a plant of the invention or may,alternatively, be used for the preparation of transgenes which can beintroduced by backcrossing. Methods for the transformation of plantsthat are well known to those of skill in the art and applicable to manycrop species include, but are not limited to, electroporation,microprojectile bombardment, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation anddirect DNA uptake by protoplasts.

To effect transformation by electroporation, one may employ eitherfriable tissues, such as a suspension culture of cells or embryogeniccallus or alternatively one may transform immature embryos or otherorganized tissue directly. In this technique, one would partiallydegrade the cell walls of the chosen cells by exposing them topectin-degrading enzymes (pectolyases) or mechanically wound tissues ina controlled manner.

An efficient method for delivering transforming DNA segments to plantcells is microprojectile bombardment. In this method, particles arecoated with nucleic acids and delivered into cells by a propellingforce. Exemplary particles include those comprised of tungsten,platinum, and preferably, gold. For the bombardment, cells in suspensionare concentrated on filters or solid culture medium. Alternatively,immature embryos or other target cells may be arranged on solid culturemedium. The cells to be bombarded are positioned at an appropriatedistance below the macroprojectile stopping plate.

An illustrative embodiment of a method for delivering DNA into plantcells by acceleration is the Biolistics Particle Delivery System, whichcan be used to propel particles coated with DNA or cells through ascreen, such as a stainless steel or Nytex screen, onto a surfacecovered with target cells. The screen disperses the particles so thatthey are not delivered to the recipient cells in large aggregates.Microprojectile bombardment techniques are widely applicable, and may beused to transform virtually any plant species.

Agrobacterium-mediated transfer is another widely applicable system forintroducing gene loci into plant cells. An advantage of the technique isthat DNA can be introduced into whole plant tissues, thereby bypassingthe need for regeneration of an intact plant from a protoplast. ModernAgrobacterium transformation vectors are capable of replication in E.coli as well as Agrobacterium, allowing for convenient manipulations(Klee et al., Bio-Technology, 3(7):637-642, 1985). Moreover, recenttechnological advances in vectors for Agrobacterium-mediated genetransfer have improved the arrangement of genes and restriction sites inthe vectors to facilitate the construction of vectors capable ofexpressing various polypeptide coding genes. The vectors described haveconvenient multi-linker regions flanked by a promoter and apolyadenylation site for direct expression of inserted polypeptidecoding genes. Additionally, Agrobacterium containing both armed anddisarmed Ti genes can be used for transformation.

In those plant strains where Agrobacterium-mediated transformation isefficient, it is the method of choice because of the facile and definednature of the gene locus transfer. The use of Agrobacterium-mediatedplant integrating vectors to introduce DNA into plant cells is wellknown in the art (Fraley et al., Bio/Technology, 3:629-635, 1985; U.S.Pat. No. 5,563,055).

Transformation of plant protoplasts also can be achieved using methodsbased on calcium phosphate precipitation, polyethylene glycol treatment,electroporation, and combinations of these treatments (see, e.g.,Potrykus et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 199:183-188, 1985; Omirulleh et al.,Plant Mol. Biol., 21(3):415-428, 1993; Fromm et al., Nature,312:791-793, 1986; Uchimiya et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 204:204, 1986;Marcotte et al., Nature, 335:454, 1988). Transformation of plants andexpression of foreign genetic elements is exemplified in Choi et al.(Plant Cell Rep., 13: 344-348, 1994), and Ellul et al. (Theor. Appl.Genet., 107:462-469, 2003).

A number of promoters have utility for plant gene expression for anygene of interest including but not limited to selectable markers,scoreable markers, genes for pest tolerance, disease resistance,nutritional enhancements and any other gene of agronomic interest.Examples of constitutive promoters useful for plant gene expressioninclude, but are not limited to, the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV)P-35S promoter, which confers constitutive, high-level expression inmost plant tissues (see, e.g., Odel et al., Nature, 313:810, 1985),including in monocots (see, e.g., Dekeyser et al., Plant Cell, 2:591,1990; Terada and Shimamoto, Mol. Gen. Genet., 220:389, 1990); a tandemlyduplicated version of the CaMV 35S promoter, the enhanced 35S promoter(P-e35S); 1 the nopaline synthase promoter (An et al., Plant Physiol.,88:547, 1988); the octopine synthase promoter (Fromm et al., Plant Cell,1:977, 1989); and the figwort mosaic virus (P-FMV) promoter as describedin U.S. Pat. No. 5,378,619 and an enhanced version of the FMV promoter(P-eFMV) where the promoter sequence of P-FMV is duplicated in tandem;the cauliflower mosaic virus 19S promoter; a sugarcane bacilliform viruspromoter; a commelina yellow mottle virus promoter; and other plant DNAvirus promoters known to express in plant cells.

A variety of plant gene promoters that are regulated in response toenvironmental, hormonal, chemical, and/or developmental signals can alsobe used for expression of an operably linked gene in plant cells,including promoters regulated by (1) heat (Callis et al., PlantPhysiol., 88:965, 1988), (2) light (e.g., pea rbcS-3A promoter,Kuhlemeier et al., Plant Cell, 1:471, 1989; maize rbcS promoter,Schaffner and Sheen, Plant Cell, 3:997, 1991; or chlorophyll a/b-bindingprotein promoter, Simpson et al., EMBO J., 4:2723, 1985), (3) hormones,such as abscisic acid (Marcotte et al., Plant Cell, 1:969, 1989), (4)wounding (e.g., wunl, Siebertz et al., Plant Cell, 1:961, 1989); or (5)chemicals such as methyl jasmonate, salicylic acid, or Safener. It mayalso be advantageous to employ organ-specific promoters (e.g., Roshal etal., EMBO J., 6:1155, 1987; Schernthaner et al., EMBO J., 7:1249, 1988;Bustos et al., Plant Cell, 1:839, 1989).

Exemplary nucleic acids which may be introduced to plants of thisinvention include, for example, DNA sequences or genes from anotherspecies, or even genes or sequences which originate with or are presentin the same species, but are incorporated into recipient cells bygenetic engineering methods rather than classical reproduction orbreeding techniques. However, the term “exogenous” is also intended torefer to genes that are not normally present in the cell beingtransformed, or perhaps simply not present in the form, structure, etc.,as found in the transforming DNA segment or gene, or genes which arenormally present and that one desires to express in a manner thatdiffers from the natural expression pattern, e.g., to over-express.Thus, the term “exogenous” gene or DNA is intended to refer to any geneor DNA segment that is introduced into a recipient cell, regardless ofwhether a similar gene may already be present in such a cell. The typeof DNA included in the exogenous DNA can include DNA which is alreadypresent in the plant cell, DNA from another plant, DNA from a differentorganism, or a DNA generated externally, such as a DNA sequencecontaining an antisense message of a gene, or a DNA sequence encoding asynthetic or modified version of a gene.

Many hundreds if not thousands of different genes are known and couldpotentially be introduced into a melon plant according to the invention.Non-limiting examples of particular genes and corresponding phenotypesone may choose to introduce into a melon plant include one or more genesfor insect tolerance, such as a Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.) gene, pesttolerance such as genes for fungal disease control, herbicide tolerancesuch as genes conferring glyphosate tolerance, and genes for qualityimprovements such as yield, nutritional enhancements, environmental orstress tolerances, or any desirable changes in plant physiology, growth,development, morphology or plant product(s). For example, structuralgenes would include any gene that confers insect tolerance including butnot limited to a Bacillus insect control protein gene as described in WO99/31248, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, U.S. Pat.No. 5,689,052, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,500,365 and 5,880,275, herein incorporated by reference intheir entirety. In another embodiment, the structural gene can confertolerance to the herbicide glyphosate as conferred by genes including,but not limited to Agrobacterium strain CP4 glyphosate resistant EPSPSgene (aroA:CP4) as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,633,435, hereinincorporated by reference in its entirety, or glyphosate oxidoreductasegene (GOX) as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,463,175, herein incorporatedby reference in its entirety.

Alternatively, the DNA coding sequences can affect these phenotypes byencoding a non-translatable RNA molecule that causes the targetedinhibition of expression of an endogenous gene, for example viaantisense- or cosuppression-mediated mechanisms (see, for example, Birdet al., Biotech. Gen. Engin. Rev., 9:207, 1991). The RNA could also be acatalytic RNA molecule (i.e., a ribozyme) engineered to cleave a desiredendogenous mRNA product (see for example, Gibson and Shillito, Mol.Biotech., 7:125, 1997). Thus, any gene which produces a protein or mRNAwhich expresses a phenotype or morphology change of interest is usefulfor the practice of the present invention.

G. DEFINITIONS

In the description and tables herein, a number of terms are used. Inorder to provide a clear and consistent understanding of thespecification and claims, the following definitions are provided:

Allele: Any of one or more alternative forms of a gene locus, all ofwhich alleles relate to one trait or characteristic. In a diploid cellor organism, the two alleles of a given gene occupy corresponding locion a pair of homologous chromosomes.

Backcrossing: A process in which a breeder repeatedly crosses hybridprogeny, for example a first generation hybrid (F₁), back to one of theparents of the hybrid progeny. Backcrossing can be used to introduce oneor more single locus conversions from one genetic background intoanother.

Crossing: The mating of two parent plants.

Cross-pollination: Fertilization by the union of two gametes fromdifferent plants.

Diploid: A cell or organism having two sets of chromosomes.

Emasculate: The removal of plant male sex organs or the inactivation ofthe organs with a cytoplasmic or nuclear genetic factor or a chemicalagent conferring male sterility.

Enzymes: Molecules which can act as catalysts in biological reactions.

F₁ Hybrid: The first generation progeny of the cross of two nonisogenicplants.

Genotype: The genetic constitution of a cell or organism.

Haploid: A cell or organism having one set of the two sets ofchromosomes in a diploid.

Linkage: A phenomenon wherein alleles on the same chromosome tend tosegregate together more often than expected by chance if theirtransmission was independent.

Marker: A readily detectable phenotype, preferably inherited incodominant fashion (both alleles at a locus in a diploid heterozygoteare readily detectable), with no environmental variance component, i.e.,heritability of 1.

Phenotype: The detectable characteristics of a cell or organism, whichcharacteristics are the manifestation of gene expression.

Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL): Quantitative trait loci (QTL) refer togenetic loci that control to some degree numerically representabletraits that are usually continuously distributed.

Resistance: As used herein, the terms “resistance” and “tolerance” areused interchangeably to describe plants that show no symptoms to aspecified biotic pest, pathogen, abiotic influence or environmentalcondition. These terms are also used to describe plants showing somesymptoms but that are still able to produce marketable product with anacceptable yield. Some plants that are referred to as resistant ortolerant are only so in the sense that they may still produce a crop,even though the plants are stunted and the yield is reduced.

Regeneration: The development of a plant from tissue culture.

Self-pollination: The transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigmaof the same plant.

Single Locus Converted (Conversion) Plant: Plants which are developed bya plant breeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially allof the morphological and physiological characteristics of a melonvariety are recovered in addition to the characteristics of the singlelocus transferred into the variety via the backcrossing technique and/orby genetic transformation.

Substantially Equivalent: A characteristic that, when compared, does notshow a statistically significant difference (e.g., p=0.05) from themean.

Tissue Culture: A composition comprising isolated cells of the same or adifferent type or a collection of such cells organized into parts of aplant.

Transgene: A genetic locus comprising a sequence which has beenintroduced into the genome of a melon plant by transformation.

H. DEPOSIT INFORMATION

A deposit of melon hybrid SV6239MF and inbred parent linesHARDV10-4020MO and HARDV11-4057AN, disclosed above and recited in theclaims, has been made with the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC),10801 University Blvd., Manassas, Va. 20110-2209. The date of thedeposit was Feb. 11, 2015. The accession numbers for those depositedseeds of melon hybrid SV6239MF and inbred parent lines HARDV10-4020MOand HARDV11-4057AN are ATCC Accession Number PTA-121998, ATCC AccessionNumber PTA-121999, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-122000, respectively.Upon issuance of a patent, all restrictions upon the deposits will beremoved, and the deposits are intended to meet all of the requirementsof 37 C.F.R. §1.801-1.809. The deposits will be maintained in thedepository for a period of 30 years, or 5 years after the last request,or for the effective life of the patent, whichever is longer, and willbe replaced if necessary during that period.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail byway of illustration and example for purposes of clarity andunderstanding, it will be obvious that certain changes and modificationsmay be practiced within the scope of the invention, as limited only bythe scope of the appended claims.

All references cited herein are hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference.

What is claimed is:
 1. A melon plant comprising at least a first set ofthe chromosomes of melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon lineHARDV11-4057AN, a sample of seed of said lines having been depositedunder ATCC Accession Number PTA-121999 and ATCC Accession NumberPTA-122000, respectively.
 2. A melon seed comprising at least a firstset of the chromosomes of melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon lineHARDV11-4057AN, a sample of seed of said lines having been depositedunder ATCC Accession Number PTA-121999 and ATCC Accession NumberPTA-122000, respectively.
 3. The plant of claim 1, which is an inbred.4. The plant of claim 1, which is a hybrid.
 5. The seed of claim 2,which is an inbred.
 6. The seed of claim 2, which is a hybrid.
 7. Theplant of claim 4, wherein the hybrid plant is melon hybrid SV6239MF, asample of seed of said hybrid SV6239MF having been deposited under ATCCAccession Number PTA-121998.
 8. The seed of claim 6, defined as a seedof melon hybrid SV6239MF, a sample of seed of said hybrid SV6239MFhaving been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-121998.
 9. Theseed of claim 2, defined as a seed of line HARDV10-4020MO or lineHARDV11-4057AN.
 10. A plant part of the plant of claim
 1. 11. The plantpart of claim 10, further defined as a leaf, an ovule, pollen, a fruit,or a cell.
 12. A melon plant having all the physiological andmorphological characteristics of the melon plant of claim
 7. 13. Atissue culture of regenerable cells of the plant of claim
 1. 14. Thetissue culture according to claim 13, comprising cells or protoplastsfrom a plant part selected from the group consisting of embryos,meristems, cotyledons, pollen, leaves, anthers, roots, root tips,pistil, flower, seed and stalks.
 15. A melon plant regenerated from thetissue culture of claim
 13. 16. A method of vegetatively propagating themelon plant of claim 1 comprising the steps of: (a) collecting tissuecapable of being propagated from the plant according to claim 1; (b)cultivating said tissue to obtain proliferated shoots; and (c) rootingsaid proliferated shoots to obtain rooted plantlets.
 17. The method ofclaim 16, further comprising growing at least a first melon plant fromsaid rooted plantlets.
 18. A method of introducing a desired trait intoa melon line comprising: (a) utilizing as a recurrent parent a plant ofeither melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon line HARDV11-4057AN, bycrossing a plant of melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon lineHARDV11-4057AN with a second donor melon plant that comprises a desiredtrait to produce F1 progeny, a sample of seed of said lines having beendeposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-121999, and ATCC AccessionNumber PTA-122000, respectively; (b) selecting an F1 progeny thatcomprises the desired trait; (c) backcrossing the selected F1 progenywith a plant of the same melon line used as the recurrent parent in step(a), to produce backcross progeny; (d) selecting backcross progenycomprising the desired trait and the physiological and morphologicalcharacteristics of the recurrent parent melon line used in step (a); and(e) repeating steps (c) and (d) three or more times to produce selectedfourth or higher backcross progeny that comprise the desired trait, andotherwise comprise essentially all of the morphological andphysiological characteristics of the recurrent parent melon line used instep (a).
 19. A melon plant produced by the method of claim
 18. 20. Amethod of producing a melon plant comprising an added trait, the methodcomprising introducing a transgene conferring the trait into a plant ofmelon hybrid SV6239MF, melon line HARDV10-4020MO or melon lineHARDV11-4057AN, a sample of seed of said hybrid and lines having beendeposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-121998, ATCC Accession NumberPTA-121999, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-122000, respectively.
 21. Amelon plant produced by the method of claim
 20. 22. The plant of claim1, further comprising a transgene.
 23. The plant of claim 22, whereinthe transgene confers a trait selected from the group consisting of malesterility, herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, pest resistance,disease resistance, modified fatty acid metabolism, environmental stresstolerance, modified carbohydrate metabolism and modified proteinmetabolism.
 24. The plant of claim 1, further comprising a single locusconversion.
 25. The plant of claim 24, wherein the single locusconversion confers a trait selected from the group consisting of malesterility, herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, pest resistance,disease resistance, modified fatty acid metabolism, environmental stresstolerance, modified carbohydrate metabolism and modified proteinmetabolism.
 26. A method for producing a seed of a melon plant derivedfrom at least one of melon hybrid SV6239MF, melon line HARDV10-4020MO ormelon line HARDV11-4057AN comprising the steps of: (a) crossing a melonplant of hybrid SV6239MF, line HARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057ANwith itself or a second melon plant; a sample of seed of said hybrid andlines having been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-121998, ATCCAccession Number PTA-121999, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-122000,respectively; and (b) allowing seed of a hybrid SV6239MF, lineHARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057AN-derived melon plant to form. 27.The method of claim 26, further comprising the steps of: (c) selfing aplant grown from said hybrid SV6239MF, line HARDV10-4020MO or lineHARDV11-4057AN-derived melon seed to yield additional hybrid SV6239MF,line HARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057AN-derived melon seed; (d)growing said additional hybrid SV6239MF, line HARDV10-4020MO or lineHARDV11-4057AN-derived melon seed of step (c) to yield additional hybridSV6239MF, line HARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057AN-derived melonplants; and (e) repeating the crossing and growing steps of (c) and (d)to generate at least a first further hybrid SV6239MF, lineHARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057AN-derived melon plant.
 28. Themethod of claim 26, wherein the second melon plant is of an inbred melonline.
 29. The method of claim 26, comprising crossing lineHARDV10-4020MO with line HARDV11-4057AN, a sample of seed of said lineshaving been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-121999, and ATCCAccession Number PTA-122000, respectively.
 30. The method of claim 27,further comprising: (f) crossing the further hybrid SV6239MF, lineHARDV10-4020MO or line HARDV11-4057AN-derived melon plant with a secondmelon plant to produce seed of a hybrid progeny plant.
 31. A plant partof the plant of claim
 7. 32. The plant part of claim 31, further definedas a leaf, a flower, a fruit, an ovule, pollen, or a cell.
 33. A methodof producing a melon seed comprising crossing the plant of claim 1 withitself or a second melon plant and allowing seed to form.
 34. A methodof producing a melon fruit comprising: (a) obtaining the plant accordingto claim 1, wherein the plant has been cultivated to maturity; and (b)collecting a melon from the plant.